Journal & Courier Interview

Journal & Courier is no longer available online. Here's the reprint.>

What kind of presence does the short story have in the 21st century? 
The short story is still alive and well. In fact, there are more story writers of excellence now than at any other time in history. And, given our on-demand culture, I'm hoping short stories will continue to find even more readers.

What are your thoughts on the Amazon.com initial rankings of your book, especially with Stephen King just behind you? How is the book doing now?
My publisher came up with a "Get Naked on Amazon" campaign, and we tried to get as many people as possible to buy it on June 1, which brought extra attention to the book. For a day or two, it was selling better than Stephen King's most recent book, which is also a story collection, and it stayed in the top twenty for over a week — long enough for my wife to screen-capture it, anyway. I'll take what I can get.

How did you use Greater Lafayette in your stories?
Tippecanoe County permeates every story in the book. "All That Water" is set on the Tippecanoe River. "Tornado Light" features a deadly car crash along River Road and name-checks Lincoln Cafe. I've fictionalized certain elements, like the high school and some of my former places of employment. A book by Don Kurtz called South of the Big Four, which is probably my favorite novel (one I hope to adapt into a screenplay soon), is set in the farm country north of Lafayette, and it gave me permission, as a young writer, to dig around my own fertile soil for fiction. I've never looked back.

It seems you are taking a multimedia approach with your book. Is this necessary for a new author in 2011?
For promotion, it is absolutely necessary. I like connecting online with readers and other writers. As someone who creates characters and deals in language, it's natural for me to create an online presence. It's just another persona. And high school classmates have been buying the book and sharing the links to Amazon on Facebook, which is nice.

How does it feel to have your first published book? Are you working on a follow-up?
Such a relief, actually. I worked on this book off and on for 10 years. Some of the stories date back to 1998-1999. I wrote other pages during the intervening years, including graphic novel scripts, and they're all in development. I also wrote a feature-length screenplay and one short screenplay. I'm now working on a novel set in Lafayette, as well as a linked story collection at least partially set here. I'll write about other places someday, but not yet.

Which is your favorite story in Naked Summer and why?
I don't have a favorite, but I'm happy that the title story, which is too long to publish on its own in a literary journal or magazine, is finally available to readers.